Looper and looper mechanism.



B. .STERl-IUUT. LQPE AND {OOPER WIECHANISM. Armmlom msn fwn. 5.1911.

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ritiro sacarle ramer GARRET B. OSTERHOUT, OF PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR TO WILLCOX c GIBBS SEWING- lVIACI-IINE CO., 0F NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

LOOPER AND LOOPER MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 15, 19t@ Application Ied Ap1'i15, 1917. Serial No. 159,983.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that l, Gi-xnnn'r B. OSTER- HoU'r, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Providence, Rhode Island, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Loopers and Looper Mechanism, which invention is fully set forth in the following specification.

The present invention relates to improve ments in loopers and looper mechanism for sewing machines, designed especially for use with what is known commercially as the Tillcox & Gibbs Sewing Machine Companys Flatlock machine, shown, for example, in the `patents to Stockton Borton No. 1,041,574 and A. A. Merritt No. 1,041,652, both dated October 15, 1912, and producing the seam of Patent No.` 888,614, dated March 81, 1908,` to said Stockton Borton. This in- .vention is not, however, restricted to use Awith anyvparticular type or make of sewing machine.

lVith the thread eye oi' each looper extending transversely through the body `of the looper, that is, with the longitudinal axis of the eye approximately perpendictt lar tothe longitudinal axis of the looper, as shown in the patents aforesaid, the looper thread, extending along one side ot the ylooper to the eye thereof, tends to bow out or stand away from the looper, beginning at therlooper eye, in a position to be stabbed or impaled by one of the descending needles. This results in breaking the looper-thread, necessitating stopping and rethreading of the machine, 0r otherwise interferes with the proper stitch formation. Experience shows this most likely to happen when a soft yarn is used as the looper thread.

Briefly stated, the present invention consists in forming the thread-eye through, the body of the looper in a diagonal direction. 1n other words, the eye is so formed through the looper that the longitudinal axis of the eye is slanted or inclined to the longitudinal axis of the looper, the exit `end of the eye being nearer the point of the looper than the entrance end of said eye. This results in 4holding the looper thread in proper position and out ,of the path of the point of the l aforesaid needle as the same descends close to the looper and enters a loop oi' looper-thread from a neighboring looper. The structural embodiment of the invention and the tunctioning thereof in accomplishing the stated result may be more readily explained and understood by reference to the accompanying drawing illustrating what is now believed to be the preferred embodiment as applied to a machine of the character oi the Flatlock machine. 1n said drawing- Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view showing stitch-forming elements of the machine in their relative positions when the points of the needles have passed through the throat-plate and are just entering the spread loops in the looper-threads;

Fig. 2 is a view looking down on the elements below the throat-plate (also showing the lower ends of the'needles in section) when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1. The loops of needle threads around the loopers, shown in Fig. 1, have been omitted in Fig. 2.

Fig. 3 is a face view of one of the loopers; and

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view through the looper of Fig. 3.

l, 2, 3 and l are a gang or' tour parallel needles each carrying a needle thread. They are secured to a Vcommon needle bar and reciprocate together. In addition to the four needles, the hook 101 having a depending horn 5C, and a thread carrier (not shown), work above the throat-plate, these parts cooperating with the needles to incorporate in the upper face of the seam, in its proper position, a cross-thread 5. A part of the presser-foot is shown at 26, and a part oli' an auxiliary foot, yieldingly carried by the main presser-foot and designated a chaming foot, is shown at 25. 281s the throatplate and 30 a piece of fabric on which the mechanism is operating.

Below the throat-plate, there is a leedsurface, portions of which are shown at 20 and 22, operating upwardly through openingsin the throat-plate ,to advance the work, the movement of the feed-surface being approximated by the ellipse 166 in dotted lines, Fig. 1. 14 is an oscillatory loopspreader having three thread-engaging hook points or teeth-see Osterhout Patent No. 1,134,483 of April 6, 1915. 15 is a loopshedder fixed rigidly to the underside of the throat-plate 28 and acting to prevent movement of the loops in the needle-threads as the loopersare withdrawn from said loops. 6, 7, 8"L and 9a are four loopers, each having a depending right-aiigled shank, shown` in Fig. 3, through which screws, only one of whichiis shown at 193, pass to bind the four loopers together and secure theni to .the`

looper carrier, a part only of which is shown at 183. The screws Amentioned also secure a plate 191 to the looper carrier.v In coperation with the other parts ofthe mechanism, the loopers are inovedin an yelliptical patlrin a substantially horizontal plane, such elliptical movement being approximated by the dotted line ellipse 199,

Fig. 2, for the point of loopergGn. The third looper l8a Vis notched on .its upper edge toV form a tooth or hook 10, adapted to engage and position looper thread 7, as and for the purpose more fully set forth in the Patent No. 1,041,698, dated October.15,1912, to A. B.Tabor. l Y f As thus far described, the construction is substantially the same as disclosed in the Tabor. and other patents aforesaid.

Each looper, for example, looper -9a shown in Figs.- 3 and 4, has a-thread groove extendying from its rear end to the thread-eye a@ near the point of the looper. Said eye, in-

stead of passing at right-angles through the body of the looper as is customary, ison aY diagonal or slant, that is to say, the axis of the eye is inclined to the longitudinal axis of the looper, the end of the eye at which the thread makes its exit being nearer the point of the looper than the other end of the` eye i where the thread enters. The thread in pass-v` ing through the eye is only slightly deflected from a straight line path, is caused to lie closely against the side of the looper and in the groove thereof, obviating bowing or spreading of thethread away from.l the looper into position toV be stabbed or impaled by a needle descending close to the looper. Thus, for example, in the. descent of the needle-2 across the side of looper 9a and close thereto, the looper-thread 9 is out of the way and there is no danger of the pointof the needle stabbing, impaling or breaking said thread. The inclination of the eye ai iof each looper also tends to position the exit -end of said eye forward of the line l,of the needles, which line is transverse `to i the length of the loopers; and to position the entrance end ofthe eye rearwardof said line-w hen. the parts are in the. ,position shownin Figs. 1 and 2, with thepoints 0f the 4needles passing the loopers. See, ,for

1. n a sewing machine,"the combination-` of a thread-carrying looper anddriviiig connections therefor, said looper having a thread-eye therethrough with its longitudinal axis diagonal to the longitudinal axis of the looper and the tlireadlexit end of the eye nearer the looper point than the thread entrance end of the eye, and a needle and driving connections actuating the same to cause thefpoint thereof lto move across and close to the looper near the thread entrance end of the looper eye and on the side of the looper 'at which said entrance end of the eye is located.

2. In a sewing'machine, the combination of a thread-carrying looper and driving connections therefor, said looper havingf a thread-groove along one side thereof leading to a thread-eye, the longitudinalaxis of .said eye being diagonal to the longitudinal axis of the looper and the thread' exit end oftheA eye nearer the looper point than the thread entrance end thereof,.and a needle and driving connectionsactuating the same t0 cause the point thereof to moveacross and close to the looper near thethread entrance end of the looper Veye and on the sideof the looper at' which said thread entrance end of the eye is located. i

3. In a sewing machine, the

nal axis diagonal .to the longitudinal axisV of the looper and the thread exit end of the4 combination of a thread-carrying looper and driving conion,

eye nearer the looper point than the thread entrance end of the eye and the looper thread being adapted to extend to the'eye along a portion of the side of the ,looper in advance of the entrance end` of said eye, and twoll needles and driving connections'-actuatingV the saine to cause the points thereof to IInove f across the loopers on opposite sideslthereof, the point 0f one of said needles moving close to the looper near the thread entrance end of the looper eye at the side of thelooper at- Which said thread entrance'end oftheeye is located.

4. In a sewing machine, the combinationl iisV of a plurality of thread-carrying looper and driving connections for longitudinally moving them together, said loopeis each having a thread-eye therethrough with itslongitudinal aXis diagonal to the longitudinal axis of the looperand the thread exiten'd of the eye nearer the looper point than thethread entrance end of the' eye and the ,looperthread being adapted to extend to the eyealong a portion oi the side of the looper which is n tive loopei' near the thread entrance end of advance ol" the entrance end of said eye, a the loopei' eye at the side of the loopei at plurality of needles alined approximately at vwhich Said thread entrance end of the eye is 1o right-angles to the longitudinal aXeS of the located.

loopei's, and driving means actuating said In testimony whereof I have signed this needles together to cause the point of each specification. needle to move across and Close to its i'espee- GARRET B. OST'ERHOUT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

